Samanids Information
The Samani dynasty (Persian: سلسلهٔ سامانیان), also known as the Samanid Empire, or simply Samanids (819–999)[1] (Persian: سامانیان Sāmāniyān) was a Persian state[2] and empire[3] in Central Asia and Greater Khorasan. Named after its founder Saman Khuda, who converted to Sunni Islam[4] despite being from Zoroastrian theocratic nobility. It was the first native Persian dynasty in Greater Iran and Central Asia after the collapse of the Sassanid Persian empire caused by the Arab conquest.
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Domination
The Samanids were a Persian state that reigned for 180 years, encompassing a territory which included Khorasan (including Kabul),[5] Ray, Transoxiania, Tabaristan, Kerman, Gorgan, and west of these provinces up to Isfahan. At the peak of their power, the Samanids controlled territory extending as far south as the Sulaiman Mountains, Ghazni and Kandahar.[6] The Samanids were descendants of Bahram Chobin,[7][8] and thus descended from the House of Mihrān, one of the Seven Great Houses of Iran. In governing their territory, the Samanids modeled their state organization after the Abbasids, mirroring the caliph's court and organization.[9] They were rewarded for supporting the Abbasids in Transoxania and Khorasan, and with their established capitals located in Bukhara, Balkh, Samarkand, and Herat, they carved their kingdom after defeating the Saffarids.[7]
With their roots stemming from the city of Balkh (then, part of Greater Khorasan)[10][11][12] the Samanids promoted the arts, giving rise to the advancement of science and literature, and thus attracted scholars such as Rudaki and Avicenna. While under Samanid control, Bukhara was a rival to Baghdad in its glory.[4] Scholars note that the Samanids revived Persian more than the Buyids and the Saffarids, while continuing to patronize Arabic to a significant degree.[4] Nevertheless, in a famous edict, Samanid authorities declared that "here, in this region, the language is Persian, and the kings of this realm are Persian kings."[4]
History
The Samanid Empire was the first native Persian dynasty to arise after the Muslim Arab conquest. The four grandsons of the dynasty's founder, Saman Khuda, had been rewarded with provinces for their faithful service to the Abbasid caliph al-Mamun: Nuh obtained Samarkand; Ahmad, Fergana; Yahya, Shash; and Elyas, Herat. Ahmad's son Nasr became governor of Transoxania in 875, but it was his brother and successor, Ismail Samani who overthrew the Saffarids and the Zaydites of Tabaristan, thus establishing a semiautonomous rule over Transoxania and Khorasan, with Bukhara as his capital.
The Samanids defeat the Saffarids and Zaydids
Samanid rule in Bukhara was not formally recognized by the caliph until the early 900s when the Saffarid ruler 'Amr-i Laith had asked the caliph for the investiture of Transoxiana. The caliph, Al-Mu'tadid however sent the Samanid amir, Ismail Samani, a letter urging him to fight Amr-i Laith and the Saffarids whom the caliph considered usurpers. According to the letter, the caliph stated that he prayed for Ismail who the caliph considered as the rightful ruler of Khorasan.[13] The letter had a profound effect on Ismail, as he was determined to oppose the Saffarids.
The two sides fought in Balkh, northern Afghanistan during the spring of 900. During battle, Ismail was significantly outnumbered as he came out with 20,000 horsemen against Amr's 70,000 strong cavalry.[14] Ismail's horsemen were ill-equipped with most having wooden stirrups while some had no shields or lances. Amr-i Laith's cavalry on the other hand, were fully equipped with weapons and armor. Despite fierce fighting, Amr was captured as some of his troops switched sides and joined Ismail.[15]
Isma'il thereafter sent an army to Tabaristan in accordance with the caliph's directive.[16] The area at that time was then controlled by the Zaydids. The Samanid army defeated the Zaydid ruler and the Samanids gained control of the region.
Cultural and religious efforts
The Samanids not only revived Persian culture but they also determinedly propagated Sunni Islam. In doing so, the Samanids repressed Ismaili Shiism[17] but remained tolerant of Twelver Shiism.[4] The Samanid state became a staunch patron of Islamic architecture and spread the Islamo-Persian culture deep into the heart of Central Asia. The population within its areas began firmly accepting Islam in significant numbers, notably in Taraz, now in modern day Kazakhstan. The first complete translation of the Qur'an into Persian occurred during the reign of Samanids in the 9th century.
According to historians, through the zealous missionary work of Samanid rulers, as many as 30,000 tents of Turks came to profess Islam and later under the Ghaznavids more than 55,000 under the Hanafi school of thought.[4] The mass conversion of the Turks to Islam eventually led to a growing influence of the Ghaznavids, who would later rule the region.
Agriculture and trading were the economic basis of Samanid State. The Samanids were heavily involved in trading - even with Europe, as thousands of Samanid coins that have been found in the Baltic and Scandinavian countries testify.[18]
Another lasting contribution of the Samanids to the history of Islamic art is the pottery known as Samanid Epigraphic Ware: plates, bowls, and pitchers fired in a white slip and decorated only with calligraphy, often elegantly and rhythmically written. The Arabic phrases used in this calligraphy are generally more or less generic well wishes, or Islamic admonitions to good table manners.
Decline
In 999, the Kara-Khanid leader Sultan Satuq Bughra Khan, grandson of the paramount tribal chief of the Karluk confederation, occupied Bukhara, the Samanid capital. The Samanid domains were split up between the Ghaznavids, who gained Khorasan and Afghanistan, and the Karakhanids, who received Transoxania; the Oxus River thus became the boundary between the two rival empires. During this period the Kara-Khanids converted to Islam.
Legacy
Image of Amir Ismail Samani in combat in the Tajikistani dirhamIn commending the Samanids, the epic Persian poet Ferdowsi says of them:
"Where have all the great Sassanids gone? From the Bahrāmids to the Samanids what has come upon?"
According to a Bukharian historian writing in 943 stated that Ismail Samani:
"was indeed worthy and right for padishahship. He was intelligent, just, compassionate person, one possessing reason and prescience...he conducted affairs with justice and good ethics. Whoever tyrannized people he would punish...In affairs of state he was always impartial."[19]
The celebrated scholar Nizam al-Mulk, in his famous work, Siyasatnama, stated that Ismail Samani:
"was extremely just, and his good qualities were many. He had pure faith in God (to Him be power and glory) and he was generous to the poor - to name only one of his notable virtues.[20]
The Somoni currency of Tajikistan is named after the Samanids. A notable airline based in Dushanbe is also named Somon Air. Also, the highest mountain in Tajikistan and in the former Soviet Union is named after Ismail Samani. The mountain was formerly known as "Stalin Peak" and "Communism Peak" but was subsequently changed to the Ismoil Somoni Peak.
Samanid Amirs
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See also
- Persian empire
- History of Iran
- Greater Khorasan
- Full list of Iranian Kingdoms
- List of Sunni Muslim dynasties
Notes
- ^ Encyclopedia Britannica, Online Edition, 2007, Samani Dynasty, LINK
- ^ Islam after communism: religion and politics in Central Asia By Adeeb Khalid, pg. 148
- ^
- A historical atlas of Uzbekistan, By Aisha Khan, Published by The Rosen Publishing Group, 2003, ISBN 0823938689, 9780823938681, pg. 23;
- The Cambridge History of Iran, By Richard Nelson Frye, William Bayne Fisher, John Andrew Boyle, Published by Cambridge University Press, 1975, ISBN 0521200938, 9780521200936, pg. 164;
- The New Encyclopaedia Britannica, By Encyclopaedia Britannica Publishers, Inc. Staff, Encyclopaedia Britannica, inc, Published by Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1987, ISBN 0852294433, 9780852294437, pg. 891;
- The monumental inscriptions from early Islamic Iran and Transoxiana, By Sheila Blair, Published by BRILL, 1992, ISBN 9004093672, 9789004093676, pg. 27.
- ^ a b c d e f The History of Iran By Elton L. Daniel, pg. 74
- ^ Tabaḳāt-i-nāsiri: a general history of the Muhammadan dynastics of Asia, pg.31, By Minhāj Sirāj Jūzjānī
- ^ The historical,social and economic setting By M. S. Asimov, pg.79
- ^ a b Iran and America: Re-Kind[l]ing a Love Lost By Badi Badiozamani, Ghazal Badiozamani, pg. 123
- ^ History of Bukhara by Narshakhi, Chapter XXIV, Pg 79
- ^ The Monumental Inscriptions from Early Islamic Iran and Transoxiana By Sheila S. Blair, pg. 27
- ^ Iranica, "ASAD B. SĀMĀNḴODĀ, ancestor of the Samanid dynasty"
- ^ Britannica, "The Samanids", Their eponym was Sāmān-Khodā, a landlord in the district of Balkh and, according to the dynasty’s claims, a descendant of Bahrām Chūbīn, the Sāsānian general.[1] or [2]
- ^ Kamoliddin, Shamsiddin S. "To the Question of the Origin of the Samanids", Transoxiana: Journal Libre de Estudios Orientales, [3]
- ^ The book of government, or, Rules for kings: the Siyar al-Muluk, or, Siyasat-nama of Nizam al-Mulk, Niẓām al-Mulk, Hubert Darke, pg.18-19
- ^ History of Islam (Vol 3) By Akbar Shah Najeebabadi, pg. 330
- ^ Ibn Khallikan's biographical dictionary By Ibn Khallikān, pg.329
- ^ Tabaḳāt-i-nāsiri: a general history of the Muhammadan dynastics of Asia, pg.32, By Minhāj Sirāj Jūzjānī
- ^ An Ismaili Heresiography: The "Bab Al-Shaytan" from Abu Tammam's Kitab Al ... By Wilferd Madelung, Paul Ernest Walker, pg. 5
- ^ History of Bukhara, By Narshakhi trans. Richard N. Frye, pg. 143
- ^ The modern Uzbeks: from the fourteenth century to the present : a cultural history, by Edward Allworth, pg. 19
- ^ The book of government, or, Rules for kings: the Siyar al-Muluk, or, Siyasat-nama of Nizam al-Mulk, Niẓām al-Mulk, Hubert Darke, pg. 14
Categories: Former countries in Asia | Former emirates | States and territories established in 819 | 999 disestablishments | 875 establishments | History of Iran | History of Tajikistan | Dynasties of Afghanistan | History of Uzbekistan | Muslim dynasties | Islamic history
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